


Head Up High

by kaiipo



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Music, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Band Fic, Gen, inspired by TWRP
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-28
Updated: 2020-02-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:34:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22450393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaiipo/pseuds/kaiipo
Summary: Matthew, Alfred, Jett and Kai are all brothers and they start a band but none of them want to show their faces so they wear weird headgear and act as characters as they perform. Not only that but they don't have a band name.They need to sort their shit out.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 14





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> THIS FIC THROWS YOU STRAIGHT INTO MY AU IDEA. There is no explanation and I AM SORRY! I wrote this on a whim!
> 
> I was heavily inspired by TWRP for this! I love their music so much and they're so charming!!!
> 
> Anyway, this AU:  
> Matthew (Canada), Alfred (America), Jett (Australia) and Kai (New Zealand) are all brothers but they were all separated as kids. They lived in different countries before discovering their connection. They also find out that they all have a passion for music and they create a band that is also fuelled by Alfred's love for space. Because this is inspired by TWRP, their genre is funk-rock with synth and heavy 80s rock influence.
> 
> For personal reasons they don't want to be completely public so they decide to create characters for their band! They cover up their faces with masks and helmets. Matthew's character's name is Sir Soul, Alfred's character's name is Captain Kuiper, Jett's character's name is Biite and Kai's character's name is Ram Tam!
> 
> Matthew sings and plays keyboard and keytar, Alfred plays the guitar, Jett plays the drums and Kai plays the bass. That's the deal bros! I hope you enjoy!

Matthew stepped onto the stage, suddenly feeling aware of the eyes staring at him. As he carried his keytar and talk box, he couldn’t help but feel a bit insecure.

It was only a small bar but to Matthew, it felt like the entire galaxy.

It wasn’t the fact that he was nervous, more so his weird choice of costume, mainly his helmet. He wore a big red helmet that was adorned with white accents around the visor, it looked like one of a motorcycle but it had two small fins pointing outwards and behind. The visor was one-way, the audience reflected on the outside of his visor. No one could tell that it was him, not that anyone remembered who he was without the helmet. He wore a white t-shirt with a red undershirt, jeans and nice red and white converses. Other than his hands, the only thing visible in his costume was his mouth. It made him quite nervous but he reminded himself it wasn’t only him but his brothers as well. 

Alfred covered his face with an astronaut helmet. After pulling multiple all-nighters, he found a way to install LED and have the helmet reflect his emotions on the screen. If he smiled, the helmet would display a simple ‘:D’. Matthew forgot Alfred was smarter than he led on. As Kai once described it; Alfred was a dumbass by day but a genius inventor by night. Alfred smiled as he felt his brother’s pride radiate off of him, it was infectious. He wore his worn-out red, white, blue patriotic shirt under his blue zipper hoodie, ripped jeans and sneakers. Alfred had his electric guitar with him, Alfred loved his guitar. It was a gift from their older brother, Arthur, he named it ‘Dangus’ but that was only after his other suggestion, ‘Fuckass’.

Kai got a bit lazier. He went with a store-bought sheep mask with a strap that held around his head but, in his defence, he didn’t realise the effort everyone else was putting into their look. So during the last week, he made two ram horns to cover his hair horns that became his defining feature. He was also the last to arrive, not knowing his horns were going to take so long to put on. He wore a light jacket vest with his favourite Star Trek t-shirt, skinny jeans and comfortable sneakers. He carried his electric bass ( _subtly_ named Ewe), fiddling with the strings and plugging in the amp. He was a little embarrassed by his lopsided horns but prideful enough to stand up straight.

And last, Jett. He donned a full-face respirator mask, it was dark forest green with bright yellow accents and black cartridges. He managed to replace the visor so it would be too dark to see his eyes but not dark enough for him to mess up his drumming. When he breathed through the mask, it echoed 10x louder. Jett had too much fun with that bit. He came in with a Hawaiian shirt decorated with small pictures of beer (Kai physically _gagged_ upon seeing him),cargo shorts and socks with Jesus sandals. He spun his drumsticks around his hands as he climbed the stage before propping himself onto his drumming seat.

Matthew placed his keytar nicely to the side and plugged his talk box into the keyboard. He stuck the talk box tube in his mouth to quietly test it out as the audience continued murmuring to each other, ignoring the men on stage. 

The four had never performed in front of people, hell, they don’t even have a band name. It was nerve-wracking, Matthew could have puked on the spot. They could sound terrible and this would be the first time that they would find out. And even though all these thoughts ran around his brain, even though this could end horribly, even though all four of them could end up separated again, he couldn’t help but feel giddy. It was _thrilling, breath-taking_ _even_.

He couldn’t help his grin as he took a hold of the microphone. “Uh, hello everyone!” He felt his nerves starting to kick in. He went with Alfred’s version of an introduction. “We’re all from the future! My name is Professor Soul. My crew behind me are Captain Kuiper," Alfred played a simple guitar riff and winked to the audience, or at least his helmet did. The audience woohed a bit. "-Biite" Jett showed off by completing a complicated but simple sounding drum roll. The audience clapped and cheered slightly louder. "-and Ram Tam!" Kai played a intricate slap bass riff, grinning when the audience cheered significately louder.

"Our goal is to eliminate boredom across the universe!” He looked at Alfred’s helmet, he raised a thumbs up as a happy emoticon displayed on the helmet. “We crash-landed in Halifax, Canada and decided to stay because we discovered life-threatening levels of boring in this area! We're here to fix that up with some sick funky jams!” The audience quietly chuckled and giggled, Matthew exhaled. The audience continued to converse, it annoyed Matthew a little but he understood describing their ‘backstory’ wouldn’t move them forward.

He cleared his throat. “This first song is called ‘Life Party’. Thank you.” The audience only lowered their voices just a bit. Matthew signalled to Jett to start the beat.

Jett hit the sticks together then begun a simple beat, enough to capture most of the audience. As the beat continued, Matthew stuck the tube back in his mouth and prepared himself to sing through the talk box.

_“Have you ever thought… of our place in the stars?”_ The audience was silent, enraptured by the sudden rhythmic, robotic voice. The melody was soft, not sad or sombre but it was building up to something. Matthew grinned as he resting his fingers on the keys. _“How lucky we are?”_

The guitar and bass weaved themselves in as the song continued. The people in the bar began swinging side to side to the happy tune, mindlessly mumbling the tune without a thought to the lyrics. _“Think just how amazing it is that we are alive on this tiny Little Rock is where we all reside!”_ Matthew felt his worries drift away as he pressed the keys of the keyboard. Alfred’s helmet displayed a delighted smile as he bopped to the tune. Kai muttered the lyrics under his breath as he pulled the strings of his bass. Jett was growing more enthusiastic as the song continued. For once in their hectic crazy lives, the four were completely in sync, blissful and content for the first time. _“There's a million, billion, trillion stars up in the sky but here we are!”_

_“Please join me, baby! And you will see!”_ The three standing starting dancing and swinging in sync without realising it, they spun at the same time, the same direction. The small audience cheered when they spun, it was the only thing that made them realise they even _did_ that. It felt _exhilarating_. Their harmony and coordination were intoxicating. _“We can be happy on this life journey! Now let me tell you how! Just get together!”_

Soon enough the whole song was finished, then their whole first and second set. Suddenly, they were packing up and putting their instruments back into Jett’s van. Their gig had ended. 

Matt blinked, feeling like the past three hours just rushed by without warning. He climbed into the backseat of the van, settling his keytar on his lap. Jett sat in the driver’s seat, Kai jumped into the passenger and Alfred reluctantly took the backseat with Matthew. 

A beat.

“Oi, mates.” Jett sounded, his mask muffling his speech only a bit. “Can we take these head mask things off now?”

Everyone groaned as they slid off their masks. They were _sweaty_. The masks and their faces.

“Duuuude, I need to install air holes into this.” Alfred chuckled, his voice sounded worn-out and tired. “Oh my god, dude! Ahah… I feel like I just went into a sauna, man.” He breathed heavily 

“Aw, man.” Kai frowned, holding up his damp, saggy mask. “My mask’s completely _drenched_.”

“Eww…” The rest of the van sounded, it was gross. The van started to stink of sweat and generally bad body odour.

Suddenly, a knock on Jett’s door. The band jolted and screamed but calmed down upon seeing a young lady out the window. Probably in her early twenties, the group analysed. Jett rolled down his window and stuck his head out. “Whaddya want, ey?”

“You’re that band that was just up in the bar, right?” She asked.

The van was silent. “Maybe-“ Kai answered before being interrupted with the rest of the band’s “SHHHH!” Kai huffed, sinking into his seat.

“Oh, don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone what you look like!” The young lady raised her hand, loyally. “I promise.”

Jett squinted, suspiciously. “Okay then. Whaddya want?”

The lady stifled a giggle. “I was wondering what your band name is! You guys have an awesome sound but you never introduced your band. I wanna listen to you guys more or at least keep updated on you four!”

The four looked at each other. “Uhhh, yeah.” Kai drew out his words to give others more time to come up with something.

“Totally! We’re called… called…” Alfred stuttered at a stop. “Uh… T-The Funk… S Express?” The band started at him, jaw dropped. They turned back to the lady who _one hundred per cent_ bought it.

“Oh wow! …Interesting name!” She awkwardly complimented. She grabbed her phone. “Where can I find you guys?”

“Oh! We haven’t set up an account for anything!” Matt waved his hands, like if he was trying to clear up something. “That’s just a working name, we haven’t decided yet.”

“Oh, that’s fine. Well, make sure the next time you come here you have an actual band name!” She chuckled, pushing her hair out of her face.

Jett blew a raspberry, growing tired of the conversation. “Well, we got a get a move on but I’ll be sure to update you, baby.” Jett winked, clicking his tongue. The lady blushed, grinning a bit. “Maybe I could get your number and we can update you then.”

The lady giggled, waving her hand. “Absolutely not.”


	2. The Hit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matthew, Alfred, Kai and Jett try to figure out their band's name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhh, so this chapter's inspired by the TWRP song, Groove Crusaders while the title is based off of The Hit (same artists babeeey). I needed something to keep this story going for at least a chapter more. Yeah, that's 'bout it.

“Okay. Name. Naaaaaaame…” Kai massaged his forehead, shutting his eyes and forcing himself to think. Jett tried staying focused on the road, while also trying to tune into the band’s conversations as much as possible. Alfred and Matthew sat in the back seats, leaning over each other and thinking as hard as possible. After ten seconds of straight thinking, the band groaned, flopping pathetically.

  
Alfred let out a hearty chuckle. “Man, how are we going to think of a band name if we’re this stumped.” He perched his legs up Kai’s seat, forcing Kai to lean forward a bit.

  
“How about…“ Matthew started, pausing for everyone to give him attention. “…we take a bunch of keywords that relate to our band and mix and match them until we find the perfect name?” Matthew rummaged through his bag to find a notebook and pen. He clicked it one and laid the book on his lap. “I’ll write down the words and after we come up with words we can try to combine some of them.

  
“Aw, yea! That’s a great idea!” Kai complimented. “Ok, we are definitely funky—“

  
“Aliens! Space!” Alfred interrupted, loudly yelling a random barrage of words. “Groove! Stardust! Cosmos!”

  
“Funk... Aliens... Space…” Matthew scribbled the words down in his notebook. “…Stardust… coooooosmos!” Matthew lifted his pen to his chin, he clicked the pen on his chin a couple times while he hummed in thought. “How about… galaxy!” He quickly wrote it down, not wasting a second. “Meteor—“

“Rangers!” Jett yelled. When Matthew gave Jett a weird look, he said, “Y’know? Like the Power Rangers?” Matthew shrugged and wrote it down.

  
“Might as well add crusaders then,” Kai added.

  
“Why crusaders?” Alfred asked.

  
“Sounds cool.”

  
“Focus!” Matthew pointed his pen directly at Alfred’s nose, chuckling as he clicked the pen on Alfred’s nose.

“Right!” Alfred smiled.

The band listed more words, objects and even names (Albert Einstein, Jett said he invented space and the three didn’t know if Jett actually thought that or not) and after ten minutes they had three pages worth of words. Skimming through the book the band chose words and combined them in an attempt to create a name.

“Stardust Rangers?” Kai suggested.

Matthew shook his head. “Nah. Sounds weird.” Everyone made sounds of agreement.

“Oh!” Alfred piped up. “How about Funk Fighters?”

“Hmmm… We’ll save that one.” Matthew lazily scribbled in down.

“Space Ninjas!” Kai announced.

“Why did we add ninjas in the first place?”

“Wait, go back. What was Alfie’s suggestion?” Jett asked, clicking his finger as his arm laid on the car door.

“Funk Fighters?” Matthew reminded.

“Funk… Funk… Groove…” Jett pursed his eyes in thought, groaning angrily when he couldn’t solidify his thoughts. “Go through the word list again, just call out the first words you see?”

“Uhh…” Matthew flipped back through the pages. “Stardust, meteor, crusaders?”

**_“Ahah!”_** Jett yelled causing the other bandmates to jolt in surprise. “I got it! Groove Crusaders! We’re the Groove Crusaders!”

“Oh, that’s perfect! The Groove Crusaders!” Alfred giggled, softly kicking Kai’s seat. “Good job, bro!”

“Yeah, Jett! Groove Crusaders is a cool name!” Matthew cheered. He quickly turned to a blank page and jotted down their new band name. “Awesome!”

“What the hell, Jett? When did you start getting good ideas?” Kai asked.

“I’ve always had good ideas!” The rest of the van was silent, Jett pouted. “Hey! I do!” The van remained silent. “Whatever, mates! I came up with our really cool band name, you should be grateful.”

A few more hours on the road, gushing about their band name that helped their motivation shoot through the roof. They wrote down lyrics for a theme song, planning to make up something once they made it to Alfred’s house. Once they got to his house, they rushed their instruments into the house, immediately switching and tuning everything as soon as they got into the house.

“Are we just improvising?” Matthew asked, playing random keys on his synth.

“I mean, that was the plan.” Alfred plucked the last string of the guitar before he strummed to check the tuning. “Improvise a theme song with the lyrics we wrote? We kind of had a rhythm it was like…” Alfred began lazily humming a tune, improvising a bass line at random intervals. “Yeah?”

“Okay, sure!” Matthew shrugged as he finally hooked up his talkbox. “Uhh, Jett give us a beat!”

“You got it, mate.” Jett played a simple rock beat that worked with the rhythm Alfred hummed before.

Second to join was Kai. Normally when they improvised, Alfred would join in with his guitar second but because they had discussed that the bass would be more prominent in the song, it was implied that he would have to figure out his bit earlier.

“Oh, yeah! This sounds awesome!” Alfred laughed. “Uhh… You go in next, Matt.”

“What about you?”

“Ah, this sounds like a cool first verse bit, doncha think?”

“Mm. I guess.” Matthew mumbled before sticking the tube into his mouth and reading off his notebook. Selecting random keys, he started, _“We are groove crusaders, making lovers out of haters. We are groove crusaders, front line of the disco war. We are groove crusaders and we're gonna even up the score.”_

Alfred finally joined, he was a bit shaky but it didn’t stop them from playing. _“Oooh, the time has come. Oooh, the time is now. Ooooh, it is now time for the groove crusaders!”_

Jett instinctively hit a tone block residing beside him. One, two, three, four— _“We rule in the name of fun! We will groove as one! Against boredom! Won't stop 'til we are done!”_ As the chorus repeated, Matthew took the time to take in the sync, the groove, _the fun_.He smiled widely as he sang into his tube. _“Against boredom! Won't stop 'til we are done!”_ Finally, Matthew threw the tube out of his mouth, yelling like he won a battle to the death. His bandmates stopped playing to stare at him as he uncharacteristically let out his war cry while he spun around the living room. 

“Oh my god! That rocked!” Matthew cheered, laughing loudly. “ _Ohhhh_ , my face hurts from _smiling!”_

“Dude, if this gets him riled up I can’t even imagine what performing this would do to him!” Alfred pulled Matthew into a hug, initiating Jett and Kai to hug their brother too.

They continued playing until they finally decided to pass out, too tired to be hungry. They all flopped to bed, reminiscing on the day that had past.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this whole thing wasn't too confusing to follow! AGH, school starts soon and I just need to barf my thoughts out right now.


End file.
